Energy plays a key role in realizing sustainable development in both advanced and developing countries alike. It is therefore vital that investment in technological development be sustained in order to maximize the benefits of currently available energy resources. Investment is also required in the field of alternative energy, particularly in light of the potential economic and strategic benefits of developing these technologies. However, uncertainty remains as to the extent to which technological innovation can satisfy future global energy requirements.

In view of the importance of this issue to the Arab Gulf region and the world as a whole, and in keeping with the aim of the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) to inform the development of strategies and policies addressing contemporary challenges in this context, the ECSSR convened its 18th Annual Energy Conference under the title: Technology and the Future of Energy, held at the Center on November 12–13, 2012. The Conference brought together a group of distinguished experts drawn from industry, academia and government to provide a strategic outlook for technological development in the energy industry, based on analysis of global energy supply and demand, current and future investment trends in energy technology, the potential impact of technological advances in the oil and gas industry, and the viability of alternative energy technologies.